Steven Ritz, professor of physics and director of the Santa Cruz Institute for Particle Physics (SCIPP), presented a strategic plan for high energy physics research in testimony before the energy subcommittee of the House Committee on Science, Space and Technology. The June 10 hearing was titled "A Review of the P5: The U.S. Vision for Particle Physics after Discovery of the Higgs Boson."

Ritz chairs the Particle Physics Project Prioritization Panel (known as "P5"), which advises the national program of particle physics research. The panel published a report in May outlining a strategic plan for U.S. investments in major particle physics projects, including U.S. involvement in international projects. Established as a subpanel of the High Energy Physics Advisory Panel (HEPAP), the P5 group reports to HEPAP, which makes recommendations to the federal agencies that fund U.S. physics research: the Department of Energy (DOE) and the National Science Foundation (NSF).

There have been two previous P5 panels, one of which was chaired by UCSC physicist Abe Seiden, Ritz's predecessor as director of SCIPP.